An Indian television host and actress was slapped during the filming of a talent show by a man who said her dress was too short.

Police arrested 24-year-old Akil Malik for allegedly slapping Gauhar Khan on Sunday during the filming of India's Raw Star, a televised singing contest that she hosts. Security guards overpowered Malik before summoning the police.

Police quoted Malik as telling Khan that "being a Muslim woman, she should not have worn such a short dress." Malik, like Khan, is Muslim.

"He attacked my integrity and tried to camouflage his cowardice by his rubbish claims of wanting to send out a message that he thought the youth of India needed today," Khan said. "Who allowed the moron to decide what the world should be doing? Why doesn't a loser like him have the fear of the law before he decides to attack a girl who is unarmed, unprepared and someone who is trying to do her work to the best of her ability?"

And she added: "This loser doesn't represent my beautiful faith, which in itself means peace and submission."

In a tweet, Khan later thanked her supporters.

Indian women are often the target of attacks by men, and the issue has gained prominence in recent years amid several much-publicized rapes.

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